


Carla in the sky with diamonds

by Princess_Unattainable



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Break Up, Drug Addiction, F/M, Hippies, Long Shot, One Shot, One swear, not canon, tragic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-25
Updated: 2015-08-25
Packaged: 2018-04-17 04:31:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,436
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4652328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Princess_Unattainable/pseuds/Princess_Unattainable
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is the story of how Stan and Carla fell apart. And how Carla McCorkle discovered the universe and found freedom.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Carla in the sky with diamonds

**Author's Note:**

> Basically written for, and partially inspired by my friend Ally over at  
> http://coffeeandconspiracies.tumblr.com/
> 
> Title inspired by the Beatles song.
> 
> I wanted to write about what really went down between Stan and Carla, or at least my interpretation.

Carla sat up hugging her knees and contemplating her life choices, a typical Friday night activity for a seventeen year old girl. How did she end up here? Ok, she knew _how_ , but why did this happen? Again, she knew _why_ too. She didn't have to wonder about that for very long without finding the answer. What she did have to decide, and ultimately what she struggled with, was what now? What should she do? What could she do? Was it even worth thinking over? She knew what she had to do. But what came after that? This is what she yearned to know as she squeezed her knees tighter and closed her eyes. 

She wanted to forget everything that had happened, but at the same time she wanted to remember every detail. Unfortunately her recollection was stuck in between what she remembered and what she had forgotten. Carla opened her eyes as she thought back to how all this started, she wasn't sure how much time had really past but it _must_ have been a few months ago. 

-

Stan was late, _again_. She was waiting for him at the Juke Joint, right by the juke box, just like she always did. Carla tapped her foot impatiently as she leaned against the jukebox looking around the small diner searching for any sign of Stan just in case he'd come in when she didn't notice. Nope, nothing. Carla sighed, she looked at her watch, it was 9:00pm, Stan said he'd meet her here at 7:30pm. The place closed in an hour. Yet, here she was leaning against the juke box watching other couples dance as she waited for her boyfriend she knew wasn't coming by now. 

Carla sighed again before walking away from the jukebox and taking a seat at the bar. Danny, one of the bartenders, turned around and smiled at Carla.  
"What'll it be hot pants?" He asked in an amused tone. That was her nickname, hot pants. She was Carla "Hot Pants" McCorkle. Stan called her that, pretty much every guy called her that. Well, Ford didn't but it would be pretty weird if he called his brother's girlfriend hot pants.

She didn't really like the nickname in all honesty, ok so that wasn't the whole truth she did in fact like it but, only when Stan called her hot pants. But Stan wasn't here right now, was he? 

"I'll take a beer please" Carla answered with absolute confidence. She really needed one, to take the edge off, to drown her emotions. 

Danny raised an eyebrow, he had to know she wasn't old enough, she came here all the time. Everyone here knew her, how could she expect to fool them?  
"I'll need to see some ID please" he said holding out his hand expectantly. 

Carla shot him an annoyed look and dug through her pocket until she found what she was looking for. The fake ID Stan made her. It wasn't very convincing, in fact it was her face with googley eyes over it, written underneath in pen was Mrs. Hotpants, age: 22 (Stan had a matching one that said Mr. Hotpants). She was hesitant in handing it over but, the fake ID had worked before, more than once. Danny took it from her and looked back and forth between her and the ID.

Maybe he felt sorry for her, maybe he was dumb as a post, or maybe he'd knocked back a few himself that night those were the only possibilities Carla could think of when Danny said "Okie dokie, one beer coming up!" Maybe this night wasn't such a waste after all.

At about 9:30pm Carla checked her watch again. Half hour to closing and still no sign of Stan. She'd drank almost half her bottle of beer. At this point she was ready to leave, there was no sense in waiting around for a guy she knew wasn't coming. She left money on the counter making sure she gave a large tip to Danny before heading for the door. But just when she was about to leave, she heard it. The quiet strums of a guitar. 

Some days they had live music after they shut off the jukebox, which they did every night a half hour before closing, but it was never like this. A tall, skinny, blonde guy with a small beard sat in a stool and played the guitar softly. When he began to sing, his voice was deep and he gave a meaningful inflection to the lyrics. It was serene and peaceful. It felt good just listening to him.

Carla took her hand off the door knob and stepped closer to the stage. It was like she was hypnotized by the sound of his voice and the way he strummed his guitar. When the song ended she snapped out of it and looked down at her beer, questioning whether or not Danny had slipped her something. She looked at the sign next to the guy on stage:

_Dimensional Healing with Thistle Downe._

She chuckled softly at the name. If Stan were there they would've made fun of it together. But Stan wasn't there. 

Thistle Downe began to play again and Carla found herself swaying a bit to the peaceful music. It was actually calming her down and making her feel _good_ , as if she hadn't just been stood up by her boyfriend for the fourth time this month. The music was so infectious that somehow she was smiling. 

Without even realizing it Carla had stayed until closing just to hear Thistle Downe's whole set. As Thistle packed up his guitar Carla approached the stage. She wanted to talk to him, to know him, she wanted to hear all his secrets about the music that made her so damn happy despite how miserable she was. 

"So, is that you're real name or...?" Carla blurted as Thistle turned around. He gave her an annoyed look and she quickly tried to recover "Not that it's a bad name or anything, it's just something ya don't hear too often" 

Thistle looked at her for a moment before laughing  
"It's cool man, I know what you meant. It's not my birth name but I dig it more than what my rents saddled me with."

Carla was delightfully surprised, he'd seemed so annoyed, she was sure he'd be upset...but he wasn't, he was fine. It seemed so odd to her, so she decided to press her luck a bit.  
"What did they saddle you with?" She asked boldly.

Thistle's response was immediate and maybe even flirty? It was hard to tell "I'd prefer to keep that mystery" 

Carla giggled and he laughed with her. 

"Hey, you seem like a pretty cool chick, you wanna hang with some of my buds tonight?" Thistle asked as he stepped down from the stage, guitar case in hand. 

Oh. _Oh._ He wanted her, Carla was sure of it. 

"I-" _have a boyfriend_ she finished the sentence mentally but something stopped her from saying it aloud. Despite the pleasant distraction of Thistle's music, she was still pissed at Stanley. 

Out of pure spite she said "I'd love to!" 

\- 

Thistle drove her to their destination in a volkswagen van. The car ride was short and they didn't talk much although at one point Carla asked "Where do you live?" Just trying to make conversation 

"You're looking at it man! This van is my home sweet home!" 

Oh. Carla thought. She looked back and realized there was a bunch of stuff in the back, clothes, a box of records, a ton of pillows and - oh god - the entire back of the van was a bed. Suddenly it was hard to breathe. She was mad but this was too far. It was then that they'd arrived at their destination. 

"A trailer park?" Carla questioned with disgust. Who the hell hangs out in a trailer park for fun? 

"Yeah, this is the place, don't knock it till you try it Flower." Thistle said with a smile.

 _Oh hell no._

"Who're you callin' Flower? We ain't friendly enough for you to be giving me nicknames ya know!" Carla replied angrily. She was still on edge about realizing she was riding in a mobile bed, she was afraid. 

"Woah woah chill out" Thistle said holding up his hands defensively "I just didn't get your name yet so I wasn't sure what to call you." 

"Oh" Carla said, a little embarrassed, "my name is Ca-" she caught herself, thinking of the bed behind her, maybe it was better that he didn't know her name  
"just call me Flower, alright" she said with an annoyed tone. 

"I dig it" was Thistle's response. 

He led her over to the back of the park where a bonfire was in progress with a bunch of people were gathered around sitting on logs 

"Hey Thitsle" they all greeted as he walked up. 

"Hey brothers" he said back, he gestured to Carla, "this is Flower, I met her at the gig tonight, she's pretty far out." 

"Hey Flower" they greeted smiling. 

"Hi" Carla responded still annoyed. 

She sat on a log across the fire from Thistle and felt out of place with these strange people, some were stargazing, others were dancing, more were roasting hot dogs, and a few were sitting in a braid train, braiding each other's long messy hair. She contemplated just going home since this wasn't very fun, that's when a lady with long blonde hair sat next to her. The lady took Carla's hand and presses a small, round, white pill into it. 

"Take this and you'll join us on a higher plain of existence" the blonde lady said.

The stranger winked before walking back to her place in the braid train. Carla looked down at her hand puzzled, what the hell was this, Advil? She brought it closer to her face oh god was this _acid?_ Holy shit! What what Stanley think? _To hell with Stanley_ Carla thought still mad. Without thinking and out of pure spite she popped the pill into her mouth.

And here's where her memory started to get hazy. A half hour later it kicked in, and it was _amazing_. Everything was hilarious and colorful. She saw the stars in a whole new way. She and these people talked about everything and nothing. Carla swore she learned all the secrets of Thistle's hypnotizing music and forgot them. But there was something else too. She felt a joy she had never experienced before and she was in love with the weightlessness she felt as she elevated towards the heavens.

She had one clear memory of that experience. At some point during the night when Thistle was telling her the secrets of his music they kissed. To this day Carla can't remember who initiated it. But she pushed him away after a few seconds, thinking clearly again.  
"I have a boyfriend!" She shouted panicked. She began to cry. "And I love him!" 

This was odd not just because of the kiss, but because she and Stanley had never said  
"I love you" to one another, at least, not in words. It's not like Carla didn't feel it, she did and she knew it. She was pretty sure he felt it too. But neither of them had the courage to put it into words. And yet here she was, shouting them out to a stranger with absolute confidence. Granted she was high as a kite, but still, it was strange. 

Thistle responded to her outburst with something like  
"It's cool man, I respect your boundaries" and Carla's smile came back in full bloom and her tears disappeared as if she'd never cried in the first place. The night carried on in peace after that. 

-

Thistle drove Carla home around 5:30 in the morning, just as they sobered up. He dropped her off in front of her house and before getting out of the car she told him that she'd definitely like to do that again. Carla climbed on the dumpster to reach the fire escape she always snuck in through when she came home after curfew, which was pretty often. She was incredibly lucky that her parents were both heavy sleepers and that one of the landings rested just below her window. She managed to sneak into bed just before her dad got up for work. 

Carla slept until noon, when her mom woke her up by yelling,  
"CARLAAA, STANLEY'S HERE FOR YOU!!!" 

She sat up groggily rubbing her eyes, Stanley?...then it all came back to her, the date, he stood her up, the music, the hippies, _the acid_ , and oh god, the kiss! Carla raised her hand to her mouth in shock. She kissed another guy! Ok, she had to cut herself some slack, she was _really_ high and Stanley had stood her up, and she was really mad and it had only lasted a few seconds and-

"CARLA?!" She heard her mom call again snapping her out of her thoughts "Don't make me come up there!" 

"Be down in a minute ma!" She called annoyed "Just let me get ready!" 

Carla quickly brushed her hair and changed her clothes, she decided to waste some time putting on a bit of make up. She didn't really need to wear it around Stan anymore but this was her version of revenge since she waited so long for him last night. She was still mad at him, even if what she did last night was worse. Carla almost put her flower hair clip in but decided against it, as it brought up the one memory she wanted to forget.

"CARLA GET YOUR ASS DOWN HERE, THIS BOY'S BEEN WAITING TWENTY MINUTES"  
Her mom yelled once again interrupting her thoughts. 

"Relax ma, I'm coming" Carla said as she walked down the stairs. When she reached the bottom her mom had disappeared somewhere and all she saw was Stanley looking up at her with a bouquet of flowers and a sad expression on his face. Her heart skipped a beat the way it did nearly every time she saw him. 

He smiled a little at her, a silent exchange going on between them. _I'm sorry_ she saw it in his eyes, a message that he would no doubt soon say aloud, repeatedly, just like he always did. She almost smiled back at him, almost. Instead she stood a step above him, so they were on eye level, with her arms folded and raised an eyebrow. That's when the apologies started. 

He had to help Ford with something and he'd gotten so wrapped up in it that he'd lost track of time. Of course, she should've known. It always had something to do with Stanford. Now, Carla didn't mind his twin brother, in fact they got along pretty well. But Stanley was always choosing him over her. _Always_. Like the time at the school dance when Mindy Mason threw punch on Ford, so Stan threw punch on himself so his brother wouldn't feel bad. Carla had spent over an hour getting him to look nice for the dance. All her work was wasted before they could get a nice picture together. It wasn't that she wanted to divide the brothers it's just that, she wished he'd choose her sometimes. 

Anyway, as his apology continued he swore up and down that he'd never do it again, just like he always did. Carla didn't want to forgive him, she wanted to stay mad, but her resolve began to soften when he looked in his eyes. She knew she'd end up forgiving him anyway, she always did. She loved him after all, even if she'd never say it to his face. 

"Carla baby, can you ever forgive me?" Stanley asked at the end of his rant looking up at her with those big, sad, puppy dog eyes he wore whenever he messed up. She could never resist that look, she sighed, forgiving him internally but not wanting to give him the satisfaction of saying it out loud yet. 

" I don't know." Carla said looking serious, and for a moment Stanley felt his heart stop. "What's in it for me?" She asked with a sly grin so he'd know she was joking. He smirked at her, knowing he was forgiven.

"Hmm, I don't know..." He said setting down the flowers and stepping closer to her "Maybe a bit of this" he grinned as her grabbed her waist and spun her around in the air as Carla laughed. "And definitely some of this" Stanley said as he dipped her and kissed her passionately. She smiled against his lips. She was putty in his hands and they both knew it. 

"Still not sure it's worth it" Carla said when he set her down. She bent down and grabbed the bouquet, making sure to stick her butt out just a bit to tease him. 

"Well then, wait till you see what's outside!" Stan said excitedly as he opened her front door and allowed her to step on her front porch before him. Carla gasped at what she saw, and in her surprise, dropped the flowers. Stan's car, El Diablo was filled with stuffed animals and heart shaped balloons, there was a big banner on the front that read  
_I'm sorry Carla_

"Oh Stanley!" She cried out bringing her hands to her face. He grinned at her and she punched his arm lightly "you big softy." She teased. Stanley scooped her up bridal style and carried her to the car. They took off down the road going wherever they wanted. The bouquet of flowers sat on Carla's porch completely forgotten. 

-

For a while things in Carla's life were amazing. She'd still go on dates with Stanley but every so often she'd meet up at night with Thistle and the other hippies. At first it was only if she'd had a bad day or was mad at Stanley, but she began to enjoy it too much. She loved the feeling of joy being with the hippies and doing acid had given her, it was the single best thing she'd ever experienced. It was overwhelming and breathtaking and every part of her yearned for it. A few times she had even cancelled dates with Stan just to have fun with hippies. 

She'd kept it a secret from Stanley, she knew he'd make fun of the hippies without even trying to understand them. As she hung out more and more with the hippies she began to understand them better. She began to appreciate their life style. And part of her wanted to live like this all the time, just pack her bags and leave her old life behind without a second thought. But she couldn't do that to her friends and family. She couldn't do that to _Stanley._

Carla also got to know Thistle better, and although she'd been skeptical of him at first, he was actually a really nice, cool, guy. There were some nights when they'd both remained sober so they could talk. Most of the time he was comforting her over something Stanley did or didn't do. Thistle was there for her. He played her more of his hypnotizing music that she loved so much. He was her best friend. 

Yes, things in Carla's life were almost perfect, except for one thing. The guilt of kissing Thistle still loomed over her. She had kept it in for a long time not telling Stanley because she was too afraid of losing him until one night she just couldn't hold it in anymore. They were lying in her bed, listening to a record. Suddenly she sat up and took the needle off the record. Stanley looked at her puzzled, about to ask what was wrong when she blurted it out.  
"I kissed another guy." She said softly, without turning around to look at him, she was too ashamed. 

"What?" Stanley asked in a shocked and slightly angry tone.

"That night you stood me up a couple months ago." Carla began, tears brimming in her eyes. "I-I was mad and I went out with this guy and his friends at a bonfire and it just happened-" she spun around to look at him as tears spilled from her eyes, his expression was angry like she knew it would be "and it didn't mean anything Stanley I swear! I was upset, and I wasn't thinking clearly and I was on acid and-" 

"Woah woah wait a minute" Stan said stopping her. "You did acid?" He asked in shock.

"Well yeah" Carla said sniffling, "I've done it a few times actually, but-" 

"Carla, do you know how dangerous that stuff is?" Stan said, concern washing away his anger. "You could've gotten hurt, babe, you've gotta stay away from that stuff it can mess you up!" 

"Stanley, that's not the point" Carla said through tears "I kissed another guy, I cheated on you-" 

"And you were on acid! I can't blame you for what the crazy stuff made you do" Stan said exasperated "But I am mad that you'd do that stuff in the first place, you could've gotten hurt!" 

"Yeah but," Carla said looking at him with determination "I-I like doing it. It makes me feel like I've never felt before it's the best thing I've ever experienced and the people I do it with are great people, they'd never let anything happen to me! And anyway, I can handle myself Stanley, I don't need you protecting me all the time!" Her face was red from yelling by the time she'd finished. Stan pulled her into his arms and stroked her hair gently as he held her. They sat in silence for a while before Stan spoke again.

"I know you don't always need me to protect you," Stan started and pulled them apart a little to look at her, he pressed his calloused hand to her cheek. "But I worry about you. I'm not gonna stop you from doing it, just promise me you'll take it easy on the acid from now on ok" she nodded and he smiled at her a little, but she knew he wouldn't just leave it at that, even though she wished he would. "I want to meet these friends of yours." 

She panicked on the inside, but knew he wouldn't take no for an answer. "Ok" she said quietly. Carla knew she couldn't keep the hippies a secret forever but she really wished she could. Though she didn't want to lose him, somehow it hurt that he didn't even care that she kissed someone else. 

_He didn't even care._

-

When Stan arrived at the trailer park two nights later, he was incredibly anxious. He knew Carla had been distant lately, probably because of her new friends and drugs she was apparently into. Stanley wanted to give all of these people the ol' left hook after what they'd done to Carla, getting her addicted to acid. But, he'd have to play nice since his girlfriend was so defensive of them.

She said she'd meet him here, he offered her a ride but Carla _insisted_ she didn't need one. Stan knew his girlfriend had been distant lately, and now he knew it was probably because of the acid trips and her new friends. Honestly, he would've preferred it if she were cheating on him, at least that would've made sense, instead she was addicted to a dangerous drug he thought she would never try. 

"Stanley!" Stan looked up, hearing his name being called from outside the car. Carla waved excitedly over to him, more enthusiastic than he'd seen her in months. Hesitantly he got out of the car and locked it before walking over to her. As soon as he was close enough, she wrapped her arms around his neck. Stan followed suit putting his hands on her hips as she pressed closer to kiss him hello. Normally Stan would feel her bare legs against his jeans but now he felt something different...Stanley broke the kiss and looked down.

That's when he saw _them_

"Carla, baby..." Stan began unsure if what he was seeing was real "Are you wearing...bell bottoms?" 

Carla quickly removed her arms from Stan's neck as if he physically repelled her.  
"So what if I am?" She said defensively with her hands on her hips "Do you got a problem with it?" Carla raised an eyebrow as she asked the question.

Stan took a step back and raised his hands up in surrender.  
"No" he said "it's just thought you hated bell bottoms" 

The anger in Carla's eyes softened and she looked down as she said  
"Well, people change Stanley." For some reason this filled Stanley with dread. 

Carla grabbed Stan’s hand, which usually gave him butterflies, but tonight he felt nothing. . She lead him into the trailer park and towards a large bonfire with a bunch of strange looking people sitting around it. One stood up as soon as he saw Carla and walked towards them. 

Stan noticed him instantly, he had long blonde hair and a small gote, he was a real bean pole too, the guy had no muscle. He wore long red bell bottoms, a head band with a flower sticking out, and a long purple- _is that a woman’s shirt?_ Stan thought. As he looked around Stan noticed that everyone was dressed strangely, and the things they were doing were even stranger. Some guys were braiding each other’s beards, other people were rolling around in the dirt, some were making up terrible songs while playing guitar while people sat around them and clapped, but most were just lying on the ground laughing. 

At this point Stan was trying not to bust a gut laughing at these clowns. 

The blonde guy made his way over and Carla instantly smiled at him. 

“Stan this is my friend Thistle Downe.” Carla said to Stan. 

“Thistle Downe?” Stan said letting out the start of a laugh but stopping just as he saw Carla’s angry face. 

“Nice to meet you man, you diggin the scene my brother?” Thistle said.  
And that’s when Stan lost it. 

Once he started laughing he just couldn’t stop. These people were ridiculous. He couldn’t control himself, he didn’t even stop when Carla started berating him for embarrassing her. 

“I’m sorry Carla, but I can’t take these idiots seriously!” Stan choked out through fits of laughter “I mean Thistle Downe? What a stupid name!” 

“Stanley!” Carla yelled out angrily, letting go of his hand and slapping his arm. 

“Ow what ya do that for?” Stanley asked rubbing his arm. When Carla hit she hit hard. 

“These people are my friends Stanley and you’re being rude!” She shouted at him “ I knew this was a mistake...I knew you wouldn’t get it” Carla looked down angrily bawling her fists. One look at the tears stuck in her eyes and Stanley knew he’d screwed up. 

“Woah, baby I’m sorry” Stan began “but I-” he was suddenly cut off by Thistle putting his hands between the feuding couple. 

“Hey chill out you two are harshing everybody’s vibes” Thistle said as he realized everyone had stopped what they were doing and were now staring at them “You need to mellow out and hear the universe” as he said this Thistle pulled two small, round, white, pills. 

Stan was immediately engulfed in rage. Now he remembered, these idiots that got Crala addicted to drugs. They convinced her this stuff was ok. They were the reason she’s been so distant. They were the ones taking her away from him. They were the reason she couldn’t look him in the eye anymore. 

_They were the reason their relationship was falling apart_. 

Carla began to reach for the pill, but before she could get to it Stan slapped the acid out of Thistle’s hand. 

“Get that stuff away from her!” Stan screamed grabbing Thistle by his shirt collar “You idiots brainwashed my girlfriend into thinking this acid crap was good for her! I ought to sock everyone of ya for messing with my hot pants-” 

“Don’t call me that!” Carla yelled with tears streaming down her face. Stanley stopped in his tracks, his fist hovering above Thistle’s face. He dropped him.  
“What?” Stan questioned. 

“Don’t call me hot pants anymore” Carla yelled “In fact, don’t even call me” she pouted as she took a step away from him.

“But Carla, baby” Stan started “You love being called hot pants, you-” 

“Not anymore” Carla began softly “Not by you. You lost the right to call me hot pants when you laughed at the people I love like family. This is who I am now Stanley, I’m a hippie. I get these people, they showed me the universe. And you don’t get it, you’ll never get it, but I do. True freedom.” By the end of her speech she was shouting at full volume. All the hippies applauded her. 

At that moment Carla felt like a bird that had flown for the first time, her wings spreading out wide. Completely and utterly free. 

“But Carla” Stan said on the brink of tears “This isn’t you.” He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. 

“It is now, take it or leave it” Carla stated boldly. The hippies cheered.

Stan looked down as a small tear escaped from his eye “I can’t” he said barely above a whisper.

“What?” Carla asked, her pride gone. She hadn’t expected this. She expected him to get angry, but he was sad he was...breaking. 

“I-I can’t leave you with these people” Stan said looking up, his face was red. “C’mon let’s go” Stan grabbed her arm “We need to leave right now.”

“I’m not going anywhere!” Carla yelled, she tried to yank her arm away but Stanley’s grip tightened. It hurt. 

“Don’t make me drag you out of her McCorkle!” Stan shouted. Uh oh, last name, she was in major trouble now. 

“You’re not taking me anywhere!” Carla said as she kicked his back. Stan turned around and Carla gulped. He was engulfed in rage. Stanley put his hands on her waist and swung her up over his shoulder where he held her firmly she kicked, screamed, and punched his back. 

The hippies started yelling at Stan, a few even went after him as he started running towards his car. Stan opening the passenger door and threw Carla in, then slammed the door. He ran to the driver’s side and got in quickly. He started the car as fast as he could and drove away. Stan made sure to lock the door so Carla couldn’t get out. 

“What is wrong with you?!” Carla screeched as Stan drove faster and faster. 

"I can't let you get hurt Carla!" Stan hollered back. "I have to protect you, no matter what."

"I don't care if I get hurt!" She snapped back 

"Well I do" Stan said as he parked in front of her house and stopped the car. "I'm sorry about this." He said as he got out of the car, locking it as he went up to her doorstep. He pounded on the door and Carla saw a light turn on upstairs in her parents' room.

A few minutes later she saw her mom and dad in their pajamas at the door, her dad had a baseball bat in his hand. Before either of her parents could say anything, Carla saw Stan tell them something animatedly with wild hand gestures. For a moment her parents just looked shocked, then she watched her mom burst into tears and her dad stare directly at her infuriated.

 _Oh my god._ Carla thought then screamed "THAT RAT! HE FINKED ON ME" and started thrashing around in his car trying to break anything and everything she saw until the door opened and she was dragged out by her father whose grip was almost as tight as Stanley's had been. She flailed around trying to get away but couldn't. 

As Stan walked back towards his car the last thing he'd heard her say was  
"STANLEY YOU JERK, I HATE YOU."

Stanley sat in his car for a moment, watching her father slam the door shut before sobbing loudly to himself. 

He had to protect her, no matter what.

-

Hours later after countless lectures and a slap from her mother, Carla lay in her bed with a tear stained face looking angrily at the ceiling. She could hear her parents arguing about her down stairs. They didn't get it. Just like Stanley. _Stanley_. She wanted nothing more than to punch him in the face. She didn't need his protection. _She didn't need him._

Suddenly Carla heard a knock at her window. Carla opened the window with her eyes shut and her fist ready, expecting it to be Stanley. She punched. Immediately she heard an "Ow man!" In a voice that definitely wasn't Stan's. Carla opened her eyes and saw Thistle holding his nose and looking at her wearily. 

"Oh my god, Thistle!" Carla said loudly, then remembering her parents, whispered "Are you ok? I'm so sorry I thought you were someone else!" 

"I'm good Flower" Thistle said removing his hands from his nose "Nothing some healing crystals won't fix." It didn't look good, she could see a bruise forming and blood coming out of one nostril. 

"Are you sure?" Carla asked reaching out to touch it "it looks broken, maybe we should go to a hospital." 

Thistle grabbed her hand with both of his before it could reach his nose. "Never mind that now, I came to get you out of here."

"What?" Carla questioned.

"I came to take you to live with us." Thistle said "You belong with m- us and I- we don't want to lose you. And it's clear now that your boyfriend and I'm guessing your parents won't let you be with us. So maybe you should run away and live with us. If that's what you really want."

"I-I don't know" Carla began, as she considered her options "This is all so sudden and what about school-"

"Drop out" Thistle said with a smile "I did and now I'm happier than ever"

"What about my friends and family?" Carla whispered

"We're the only friends and family you need now." Thistle said much too calmly. "Come with us."

"I- I don't know about all this" Carla said taking her hand away, maybe Stanley was right about these people "I just don't think I can leave my whole life behind. Maybe I'm not cut out to be a hippie after all. Maybe Stanley was right. I'm sorry Thistle but-"

Carla was cut off when suddenly Thistle began to sing. 

_Come with us flower child._  
Join us Carla M.  
Leave all your cares behind you.  
Blowin in the wind.  
You don't need anybody else.  
You just need to be free.  
So come with me. 

Carla felt hypnotized by his voice all over again. She was putty in his hands and they both knew it. Carla reunited their hands and smiled at him. 

"Let's go!" She said happily.

"Carla?" She heard her dad yell as he climbed the stairs, "what's going on up there?"

Carla claimed quickly out the window and ran down the fire escape dragging Thistle behind her.

"What about your stuff?" Thistle asked as they reached the ground.

"Who needs material possessions?" Carla asked "All I need is love." 

And with that they took off in Thistle's van.

Carla laughed as she heard her mom scream into the night. 

-

Carla hugged her knees even closer. How could this have happened? She was naked in the back of Thistle's van with him sleeping beside her. One thing had lead to another that night after they drove away from her house. Soon they found themselves kissing. Then making out. Then his hands traveled around. And then- well, they ended up in his bed in the back of his van. 

It was different than it was with Stanley. The touches were more tentative and cautious since Thistle didn't know her as well. His arms weren't big or strong. His grunts were softer. His hands explored her body more, looking for the right places to touch. Somehow it wasn't worse, but it wasn't better either.

She had woken up about an hour ago with a start. Had she really run away from home to be with the hippies? Her parents were gonna kill her if she went back. _If._ Now that she thought about it, she really did want to run away with the hippies. She wanted to be one of them, more than anything in the world. But she couldn't really do that could she? _Could she?_ Carla glanced down at the sleeping Thistle beside her. He had shown her the universe and all it's many secrets and wonders. She glanced to the other side and saw a small baggie of acid next to her. It made her feel alive in a way Stanley never could. 

Carla knew she had to make a choice and she'd already made it. Now came the hardest part. Saying goodbye.

-

The next day Carla snuck back into her room, which was exceptionally hard with police stationed outside her house but she managed. She packed a suitcase, she needed some material possessions after all, and wrote a note for her parents leaving it on her bed. Carla looked around her room one last time before leaving. 

She couldn't face her parents, but this next part was something she could do, no matter how hard it was for her. Carla called him from a pay phone, told him to meet her at the swings on the beach alone, no cops, no parents, no twin, just him. And he did.

Carla told him she had to, that she was dropping out of high school, running away, and joining the hippies. And that she was leaving him. Forever. There was loud, angry arguing but that was to be expected. When it was over he said what she was always afraid he would:

"My ma was right about you." 

In the end she left him on the swing to sulk and watched in agony as his brother came to comfort him, the way she wished she could.

But this was all for the best, after all the was finally free to explore the entire universe. Carla looked down at the acid she held in her hand, and put it in her mouth swallowing. 

_Goodbye Stanley_.

**Author's Note:**

> Before writing this I didn't shop Starla, and now I'm Starla trash


End file.
